Commerce’s order says it will block “any provision of service to distribute or maintain the WeChat or TikTok mobile applications, constituent code, or application updates through an online mobile application store in the U.S,” as well as money transfers between U.S. users and individuals outside of the country.
Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said he made the decision to ban the two apps following a review of national security concerns purported by the Trump Administration.
Multipe companies challenge the bans on WeChat and TikTok
Naturally, the ban has drawn criticism from multiple companies across the U.S. who utilize WeChat for business transactions in Chinese markets. Immediately after the ban, a group of users attempted to file a preliminary injunction to block the order, which was declined by a federal judge in California.
Commenting on a court filing related to the case, Erwin Chemerinsky, school dean of UC Berkeley Law argued the ban “is the equivalent of a complete ban of a newspaper, a TV channel, or a website used by the tens of millions of U.S. citizens who regularly use the WeChat platform to communicate ideas and to conduct business every day in the United States.”
